Ostrava, Industrial metropolis in Moravia-Silesia, Czech Republic
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic, located in the Moravia-Silesia region about 300 kilometers (186 miles) east of Prague. The cityscape is marked by decommissioned steelworks and red brick buildings, while the old town with its 19th-century townhouses forms a more compact center.
The discovery of rich coal seams around 1763 turned the small trading settlement into an industrial hub that expanded through the 20th century. After mining ended in the 1990s, the city began repurposing its defunct plants into cultural venues.
Residents now use the former industrial site as a venue for concerts and open-air festivals, with the old blast furnaces serving as backdrop. The city has shifted from a mining center to a place where visitors can walk among gasometers and explore converted factory halls.
The city is easy to explore on foot and by public transport, with trams connecting the different districts and the industrial monument Landek Park. Visitors planning to climb the upper observation platform of a former coking plant should wear sturdy shoes and feel comfortable with heights.
An underground maze of old tunnels beneath the city center leads through several levels and was originally built for coal extraction. Visitors can now walk through parts of these passages and feel the cool, damp air rising from below.
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